Trump administration authorizes 200 National Guard members for Portland deployment

The Trump administration called 200 members of the Oregon National Guard into federal service on Sunday for a 60-day deployment, according to a memo sent to Gov. Tina Kotek Sunday from the Department of Defense.

Hours later that order was met with resistance from Oregon’s top officials and the city of Portland in the form of a federal lawsuit arguing the administration had overreached and acted unlawfully.

In addition to the lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s use of the Title 10 designation to federalize the state’s National Guard, the Oregon Department of Justice on Monday filed a temporary restraining order asking a federal judge to block the deployment.

“In furtherance of a nationwide campaign to incorporate the military into civilian law enforcement—while also seeking to punish select, politically disfavored jurisdictions—they are preparing to deploy troops in Portland, Oregon," attorneys for Oregon and the city of Portland wrote in the filing. “The facts do not remotely justify this overreach.”

Related: ‘Portland is doing just fine’: Oregon governor rejects Trump’s plan to send troops to the city

For weeks, President Trump has called out Portland, specifically citing protests outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building on Macadam Avenue.

Trump had hinted that he may send additional federal law enforcement or troops to the city in response. Many state and local officials have disputed that framing, saying that the president is relying on an outdated view of the city and may be referencing videos from the protests in 2020.

Gov. Tina Kotek, Attorney General Dan Rayfield and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson appeared at a news conference Sunday afternoon where the trio announced their lawsuit and pushed back against Trump’s portrayal of the city.

“The problem is that the president is using social media to inform his views,” Rayfield said. “Instead of working with elected leaders across this country, the president is either purposefully ignoring the reality on the ground in Portland to score political points, or at best is recklessly relying upon social media gossip.”

The restraining order filed Monday argues President Trump violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits using military for domestic law enforcement.

On Sept. 2, a federal judge in California ruled the president’s decision to call up that state’s national guard and deploy active duty military to Los Angeles was a “willful” violation of federal law. The judge in that case wrote he was concerned the administration could create “national police force with the President as its chief.” The ruling only applies to California.

Throughout the weekend, some Oregon officials had hoped to persuade Trump and other cabinet officials from moving forward with a plan he announced on social media Saturday morning to send troops to Portland — “authorizing Full Force, if necessary” — though the president did not specify what he meant.

Others, including U.S. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez DeRemer welcomed Trump’s decision. Over the weekend, the former Oregon Congresswoman called the city a “crime ridden war zone.”

Kotek said she spoke with Trump Saturday by phone. The two also exchanged text messages Sunday.

“What I can say is the text exchange started with the assumption we would continue to have conversations,” the governor said. “Then we received notice that they were invoking Title 10. I expressed my disagreement and disgruntlement with that decision. And that’s where we’ve left it.”

Kotek said she told the president there was no insurrection or public safety threat that requires military intervention in Oregon. She warned Trump’s decision to federalize members of the National Guard was not only an unlawful abuse of power, but would ultimately make Oregonians less safe.

Related: Portland leaders urge calm amid reports of a surge in federal officers at the ICE building

On social media, Trump described the city as “War ravaged” and “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.” According to Kotek, during their text exchange, Trump told the governor he was concerned about the ICE building.

The processing facility, which has operated since 2011, has drawn protests.

In June, when the Trump administration ramped up immigration enforcement operations, a few larger protests got confrontational. Protesters threw water bottles and other projectiles as Department of Homeland Security officers used teargas and other munitions to disperse the crowd.

The government responded by increasing security and covering much of the building in plywood.

Related: Trump says he’ll send troops to Portland to handle ‘domestic terrorists’

Despite some isolated escalations, typically demonstrations outside the building are small with no more than a few dozen protesters — a far cry from what the city experienced in 2020 outside the federal courthouse a few miles away in Portland’s downtown.

“It would be an understatement to say that I’m so disappointed at the irresponsibility of our federal government,” Mayor Wilson said Sunday. “We do not deny that Portland has hard and important work to do, and we’ve been doing it.”

Wilson added: “To bring this narrative to Portland, to say that we are anything but a city on the rise, is counter what truth is.”

The mayor said he expected residents to use their First Amendment rights to protest, but all three leaders cautioned against violence and asked that demonstrations remain peaceful.

Over the weekend, news of the president sending troops to the city brought larger crowds outside the Portland ICE building.

Kathryn Holland said she was surprised by the disconnect between what is happening in the city and the national rhetoric.

“I wanted to see what was really happening,” she said. “What was happening is people protesting like they should be. No violence. And that’s exactly what I’ve seen since I’ve been here.”

While it’s unclear whether Oregon leaders will be successful as they try to halt the deployment in court, Kotek sought to remind everyone that the National Guard “made up of Oregonians who are citizen soldiers, who are our neighbors and our friends.”

OPB’s Troy Brynelson contributed to this report.